Whiskers on Kittens
by Skarmoree
Summary: "What happens if you use your Lucky Charm when there's no danger?" Sharpies, whiskers, a scarf and an accidental identity reveal, that's what!
1. Chapter 1

Ladybug and Chat Noir always went on patrols. Usually they took the same routes, keeping each other company in the time it took to scan the city of Paris.

Yet on other times the two decided to go in seperate ways, completing their patrols in record time.  
Tonight was such a night, and when their paths crossed, the red and black-clad heroes stopped to rest on a rooftop.

"Bugaboo," Chat Noir started suddenly, causing Ladybug to jerk from her near-asleep state.

"Mhmm?" She replied in a lazy tone. She leant back on her hands, eyeing the cat beside her.

"It has been nearly a year since we began all of this, hasn't it?"

Ladybug blinked. "Well, yes, I suppose." She shrugged, staring up at the streetlight-lit sky. "We should do something to celebrate, don't you think?"

Chat Noir nodded, my thoughts exactly, L.B."

"Do you ever refer to me by my real name?" The Lady Luck sighed.

He blinked. "Well, I don't really _know_ it-"

"You knew what I meant;" She interrupted, frowning. Chat Noir's cat ears drooped ever-so-slightly, but Ladybug caught the difference in demeanour. "Oh, sorry..."

"It's fine, My Lady." He brushed off, turning his green eyes down to the street below them. Cars drove past, filling the awkward space between the partners.

The silence covered the two like a blanket, growing heavier by the minute.

"Hey..." Ladybug started up again quietly, Chat Noir's green eyes flickered up to meet her blue ones. "We don't even know much about each other at all, do we?"

Chat Noir hummed an agreement. "But if you don't feel comfortable revealing your identity to me, I won't push you." Ladybug smiled.

"Thank you;" she said "you don't know how much your words mean to me."

"So if I said I love you-"

"Don't push your luck."

Two seconds passed in silence. Chat Noir smirked. Ladybug's eyes widened in realisation.

"My Lady, was that a pun?" The cat superhero chuckled.

"Not intentionally! No don't do this kitty, you said you wouldn't!" She denied, holding her hands out in front of her in defence.

"I made no such _purr_ omises." He smirked deviously, tail flicking out behind him. His Lady groaned at her fate. "I would've remembered it in our little chit- _chat_."

"Are you serious right now?"

"No, I'm just _kitten_ around."

"How do you even...?" She didn't bother completing the question, letting it hang in the air.

"Deter _meow_ nation." Chat grinned. Ladybug threw her hands up in defeat.

"Okay, I surrender! Just please don't make any more!"

"One more? _Paw_ lease?"

"Nope." She deadpanned.

"Aww."

"So, kitten." Ladybug sighed, massaging her temples. "With _no_ Cat puns, we're going to do something I wouldn't have dared before tonight."

Chat Noir's heart leapt. "Are you finally falling for me, Bugaboo?"

"Once again, don't push it," she said, completing the threat with a withering glare. "We're going to learn about each other."

"Oh?" Chat's tone was an indistinguishable mix between disappointment and curiosity.

"Answering questions. About us in and out of mask, but nothing too revealing." She folded her arms, surveying her partner's reaction. Besides his ears flicking as another car went past, no change.

"I'll let you go first." She said, smiling gently at him.

"Ohh-Kay..." Chat began, stroking his chin. "What to ask, what to learn... Ah! Ladybug, do you wear your hair in two ponytails all the time or just in suit?"

Ladybug laughed. "Oh, these?" She stroked the bunches of hair, defined by red ribbon and smiled at the Cat. "I've had them for a while now, almost two years. Before that I had a bun in my hair."

"A bun?" Chat grinned, visualising the spotted hero with her hair in the other style. "Would that make it a..."

"Don't!"

"Lady _bun_?" He completed, much to the annoyance of his partner.

"I said no puns!" She raged, pouting at the black-clad hero beside her.

"Ah, L. B. You only said _cat_ puns. I have a right to any other type possible."

"Not anymore. I'm revoking that right."

"Wha- hey!" Chat protested, only for Ladybug to poke her tongue out in reply. He sighed in resignation, gesturing to the girl. "Your turn for a question."

"Oh, yeah. Uhmm... What colour are your eyes under the mask? It's really confusing for you to have cat eyes whilst transformed."

"Yeah, I've also wondered about that, to be honest. They're naturally green, but less..." With a lack of words to describe what he wanted, the cat motioned with his hands. "You know."

Ladybug giggled, hiding her mouth with her hand. "Well, your turn." she said, booping him on the nose. He blinked.

"Favourite colour?"

"Pastel pink. Yours?"

"Blue." he shot back immediately, thinking back to the scarf he received for his birthday. It had become his favourite article of clothing, and he wore it at any given opportunity. It wasn't the only blue thing he loved, the thought, glancing over at Ladybug. Her eyes shone bright blue in the city's light, hair matching. His Lady was, for lack of a better word, _Radiant._ God above, he really _was_ smitten with her.

"Huh," Ladybug pondered, leaning back to look at her partner in full. "I would've thought green."

"I just look good in it." Chat shrugged, a smile tugging his lips upwards. The girl groaned, her own mouth betraying herself to form a grin. "Anyway, favourite video game?"

The spotted hero paused for a minute, brain trying to choose out of a long list. "I like Fire Emblem." She ended up saying "But it is certainly one of many games I love!"

"Awakening?" The boy asked.

"Yup!"

"Who did you S-support?" He wiggled his eyebrows at her, causing another giggle to spill out of his mouth. "I myself chose Olivia."

"Really? I would've taken you to be more of a Cordelia kind of guy." Chat shook his head. "Well, I went with Chrom." Ladybug said, averting his eyes.

"Typical," The black cat huffed humourously. "The awkward dork who seems to break things." His partner looked at him pointedly, and he grinned sheepishly.

"We're getting off topic," She said, dodging the near-oncoming flirt. "Do you flirt with anyone else or am I a special case?"

"Just you, My Lady. Well, with one exception;" Ladybug listened intently, adjusting her posture to sit on the roof more comfortably. "There's a really cute girl that I sometimes run into during an Akuma attack. She's helped me out on several occasions." Chat smiled, thinking back to his classmate, who had no idea that he sat in front of her everyday at school.

"Well, if you managed to gain her favour, I'd be surprised." the Lady Luck said, knowing that he was unwittingly referring to her outside of suit.

"Next question!" Chat Noir said suddenly, shaking her out of her stupor. "Best Akuma we've fought? I mean, which one do you think was the most imaginative that hawkmoth has come up with?"

"I- I don't think I follow..." She said, tilting her head to the side.

"Well, I enjoyed fighting the Mime. He was different to anything we had faced because of his vow of silence. I thought he was cool."

Ladybug shook her head, tutting. "You really are strange, Kitty."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Well, I suppose I liked Mr. Pigeon." She stole a sly glance at her partner. "Besides, I found out your ultimate weakness!"

"I expected you to say Timebreaker, to be honest." Chat remarked, brushing off the jab. Ladybug shuddered, holding her arms close to her body.

"Don't." She said softly, eyes downcast. Chat Noir's ears drooped the second time that evening, tail swishing from one side to the other behind him. _It wasn't like he meant to upset her_

"What happens if you use Lucky Charm when there's no danger around?" He said quietly, drawing away and trying to divert the touchy subject. I seemed to work, as his partner resumed a more confident stance.

"You know," Ladybug said slowly, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "I have no idea." She frowned, pondering on the question.

"Care to find out?" the cat asked, gesturing to the yo-yo hanging off her hips.

"We really shouldn't- I mean, what if an akuma attacks?"

"My lady, we haven't had a nighttime attack for nearly two whole months. Just this once." Chat Noir pouted, cat-like eyes turning into puppy-dog ones as he pleaded.

"But what if there _is?_ I can't just-"

"If there is, I'll hold them off until your Kwami can recharge;" he interrupted, flashing his black-and-green ring towards her in a promise. "Which reminds me, what is your Kwami's name?"

"Hey, no fair! Two questions at once is cheating!" The girl cried, folding her arms in mock annoyance.

"Just answer the question, bugaboo."

Ladybug sighed, shaking her head at his antics. "Tikki. About this big-" she motioned with her hands "-and red and has a couple of black spots on her head. She's super adorable and sweet and really supportive when I need her to be."

" _What?!_ " Chat Noir groaned, tail lashing again. "How come your Kwami is easy to handle?!" Seeing Ladybug's questioning look, he continued. "Plagg. Black and sort of cat-ish, rude, lazy and obsessed with cheese. And I mean _obsessed._ I smell like a cheese shop permanently because of him."

Ladybug giggled, blue eyes sparkling. "Okay, you've convinced me- just this once." She said, standing up, unhooking her yo-yo. Chat grinned widely as she got into position to cast her power.

" _Lucky Charm!_ " The spotted hero called out into the night, releasing her yo-yo upwards, magic flowing outwards from it. The sparks formed an object, falling down into Ladybug's waiting hand.

"So what is it?" Chat Noir asked, reaching her on all fours.

"Shush now, kitty-cat." Ladybug scolded, examining the small black and red object. A marker. She wondered why, of all things to appear in a peaceful time, it was a texta. Glancing about, her eyes caught on the cat beside her, pouting at her silencing of him previously. A devious smile formed on her face as she uncapped the pen.

Chat Noir blinked when he realised what it was. "Ladybug, is that a... nevermind, what is it for?"

Ladybug grinned, twirling the red and black spotted marker between her fingers

"My Lady, what are you planning?" Chat Noir said, staring at his partner suspiciously.

"Here, kitty kitty!"

"Wha- Ladybu- No!" He cried, dodging her first lunge. He barely avoided her second jab, skittering away across the roof. The entire scene somewhat reminded Ladybug of the incident with Dark Cupid (not that she'd ever need reminding of that).

An all-out sprint was what became of the two heroes, Chat Noir rushing ahead to avoid His Lady with a marker. Unfortunately, as it always is when you have bad luck, he was pinned to a chimney by Ladybug's yo-yo string. He struggled against the durable string, trying to break free as Ladybug advanced, still twirling the pen between her fingers.

"This little kitty is missing his whiskers." She smirked, bringing the texta up to his face. He shied away slightly, but couldn't get too far tied up as he was.

 _...Permanent marker doesn't wash off, even if a magical cleansing light restores everything back the way it was._

Plagg was cackling like a maniac, devouring cheese. _Nothing new._ Adrien Agreste had whiskers drawn across his face. _That was going to be a little harder to explain._

 **To all my lovely readers and reviewers (seriously you all make my day when I get a like/follow/review), not to worry, as Chapter 2 is officially in progress starting from today!**

 **It may take a little while to be published, as my maths work is a little (read: a lot) backed up, but it will be happening :)**


	2. Chapter 2

Adrien Agreste stared at his face in the mirror for a minute, before letting out a loud groan. Plagg cackled. "Kid, that girl really is hilarious! I like her!"

"I do too." Adrien agreed "But this is kind of ridiculous! I can't go to school like this!"

"Sure you can." Plagg grinned, throwing a piece of cheese into the air, swallowing it whole.

"But people will see!" Adrien cried dramatically, falling against the mirror. The black lines drawn on his cheeks were going to be a dead giveaway for his secret superhero life, to anyone that knew of Chat Noir's existence (that is, everyone in Paris)

"So?" Plagg shrugged.

"What if Ladybug goes to our school? What if she is in my class?! What if she finds out who I am?"

"It's not the end of the world;" Plagg sighed, whizzing through the air to rest on the blond teen's head. "I mean, the worst that can happen is other people recognise you, Hawkmoth finds out who you are, it puts your friends and family in danger, he starts targeting your civilian self, you have to give up your miraculous, and then he make you suffer through a fate worse than death and—"

Adrien slammed his head against the mirror.

"Okay, it's pretty bad;' The Kwami admitted with a sigh "Maybe you could pass it off that you have a video channel or something and it was a challenge someone sent in."

"That won't work... unless I actually set up a channel to prove it."

"Nah, too much effort," Plagg complained, slipping down to rest in front of his companion.

"Then what excuse works? Photo shoots?"

"Wow, you really are the worst at coming up with ideas." The black cat-being floated up into the air again, tail whipping from side to side. "Come on- you don't want to be late for school."

"B-but what about Natalie and Father?" Adrien asked, turning to watch his Kwami.

"When do they ever see you in the morning anyway?"

"...You're right..." Adrien frowned, brow creasing.

"Ah," Plagg faltered "I'm sorry kid, I didn't mean it-"

"It's fine. Come on, we should go." The boy sighed, holding open his jacket. The cat-like creature whizzed into hiding, and as soon as he was settled Adrien exited the bathroom. He grabbed his satchel, before pausing and quickly scanning his room. Quickly he grabbed the blue scarf off the back of his couch, winding it around his neck, effectively hiding the lower whiskers.

Nodding in bare satisfaction, he turned to cross his room once more, bag dangling off his shoulder.

Reaching the door, he stood there silently, hand hovering before the handle.

"Hey, what's the hold-up?" Plagg groaned, head popping out.

"Gorilla." Adrien said simply, and Plagg scoffed.

"Like he'd notice."

"He notices everything." He protested "It's his job."

"Uuuuuuuuuuuurrrgh." The Kwami sighed loudly, flying out to head-butt the boy. "Look kid, what do you want to do about it?"

Adrien looked pointedly at him.

"No."

"Plagg."

" _No."_

" _Plagg."_

"No!"

Chat Noir jumped over the rooftops, making sure to stay out of line of the civilian's line of sight, leaping from place to place and ducking out of view. He reached the corner the school sat on and ducked around an alleyway, checking several times that the coast was clear.

Releasing the transformation, Adrien rewound his scarf tighter, before slowly making his way to class, trying his best to avoid any other students.

"Adrikins!" _No such luck._

"Uuh, Hey Chloé." He mumbled, pulling the scarf up further as his childhood friend came running towards him, tackling him with a hug as soon as he was within her arm's reach.  
He pushed her away quickly when she tried to plant a kiss on his cheek, attempting to pull down the blue fabric as she did so. When he resisted she pouted slightly, staring at him in suspicion. He shuffled uncomfortably under her gaze, arm reaching up to rub the back on his neck.

"Sabrina, let's go." She announced suddenly, turning on her heel and flouncing off. Her friend trailed along after her, tapping frantically at the screen of her phone. Adrien let out a breath he didn't realise he was holding, taking more care as he ascended the steps to the school.

He waited for the bell to ring, slouching behind the open door to his locker, listening to the daily banter between Alix and Kim, rolling his eyes when he heard the announcement of yet another crazy dare. Several of their classmates dotted about also groaned, and Adrien swore he heard someone slam their head into their locker in annoyance.

Startled by the ringing bell, he quickly grabbed his subject books and tablet, dashing off to class. As he rounded the corner he blinked in surprise, holding his book up higher to hide the lower half of his face. Nino leant on the door, grinning as he talked to Alya. The two fist-bumped, before Nino looked up and spotted his best friend. "Yo, Adrien!" He called, bringing a hand up to give a short wave. "We were just talking about the new Ladyblog update. It's mega-cool."

"Is it?" Adrien asked casually, though his mind was already going through the five stages of grief, shifting the books again.

"Dude!" Nino laughed "I thought you kept up with the news." Adrien shrugged in reply. "I'll let Alya tell you then."

Said girl grinned, holding up her phone to the blond model. "Big scoop last night." She started, clicking to enlarge a photo from her blog. A clear shot of Ladybug poking her tongue out at her partner as he threw his hands up in the air. Adrien recalled the exact moment, though tried his best not to show any recognition.

"Weren't you meant to be doing homework?" Adrien muttered, raising an eyebrow.

"Shush, I just _had_ to get this one. Anyway, Ladybug and Chat Noir were on patrol last night and met up on a rooftop. They sat for a while, talking I suppose, but I couldn't hear them, even when I snuck out to—"

"You snuck out?!" Adrien yelped.

"Besides the point, bro." Nino sighed, folding his arms. "Alya hasn't told you the best part."

"Get this- Ladybug used her superpower- you know- Lucky Charm? She used it when there we no super villains around. This is the first time ever!" She scrolled across, a new photo of Ladybug with her yo-yo in the air, magic glittering around it. "Though I couldn't zoom in far enough to see what it was the object was really small..."

"Oh man, this is the best part." Nino chuckled, motioning for the reporter to continue as the three walked together into the classroom, taking their seats. Alya leant between the two, Marinette not yet in class (late, as usual)

"Ladybug started to chase Chat Noir around the city, too fast for me to follow faithfully, but they were laughing most of the time. She pulled her phone back, smoothly navigating her blog to find a shaky video of the heroes part way through their run.

" _Here kitty, come on!" Ladybug called as she vaulted over a gap, nearly catching up to her partner._

" _No! Ladybug don't!" He ducked around a chimney, doubling back across rooftops. Ladybug wasn't far behind, easily swinging on her yo-yo back to where he was. They dashed over a flat roof, jumping in perfect synchronisation to the next one._

 _Chat Noir pulled out his staff, extending it so he reached across the street, rolling when he hit the roof. Ladybug followed, string whizzing past him and cutting him off._

" _No no-nonono!" He yelled, dodging and turning tail to escape, only to find he was cornered._

" _Trapped like a mouse in a cage." Ladybug announced, yo-yo whirling by her side as she advanced. Chat Noir started slowly backwards, only to find himself up against a chimney.  
With a swift movement, Ladybug tossed her yo-yo, catching the cat-themed hero off guard and tying him to the short brick tower. He struggled, unable to move properly._

 _She walked up to him, hand twirling the lucky charm as she pulled it up to his face. "This little kitty is missing his whiskers."_ She said, and the video cut off.

Alya laughed ecstatically, exiting full screen and pulling up another image. "And this-" She said dramatically, holding up her phone, much to the dismay of Adrien "Was what her lucky charm was! A marker!"

The photo was off a pouty Chat Noir, whiskers drawn on his face as he sat on the edge of a roof, ladybug laughing to herself in the background. Though Chat was clearly annoyed, a humorous spark was still in his eyes as he half turned to look at his Lady.

"Chat Noir had whiskers!" Nino crowed. "She gave him whiskers!"

"That's not even the best part though." Alya continued. "I don't have any photos, but Ladybug did her purifying thing afterwards, and the _whiskers did not come off_."

"This is rich, dude!"

"It might be my ticket to finding out who he really is, granted that they didn't come off when he de-transformed."

Underneath his jacket, Plagg shifted nervously. Adrien tried his best to laugh along with his friends, but desperately trying to keep his face hidden.

 _Oh no this is bad this is very, very bad they are going to find out and my identity won't be a secret oh no oh no oh no_

"Hey, bro, why are you hiding behind your books anyway?" Nino poked Adrien's shoulder, attempting to view his friend's face.

 _Oh no no no-no-no-no-no-nononononono craaaaaaaaaaaaap._

 _ **AYY I DID IT :D**_ _**(sorry for the hold up but school is stupid. Good news is I got a new maths teacher and he's SO much better!**_

 **Keep your eyes peeled for chapter 3!**


	3. Chapter 3

Adrien took a deep breath before looking back at his best friend.

'W-what do you mean?' He stuttered out. Nino raised an eyebrow as the trio began to walk into the classroom, taking their usual seats.

'You know what I mean. You're acting odd this morning.'

'Am I?' Adrien was vaguely aware of Alya putting away her phone, full attention on him. 'I, ah, hadn't noticed.'

'Adrien, dude.' Nino held up a hand, other posed over his heart. 'We're bros. I can tell when you're hiding something from me.'

'I'm not hiding anything.' he said hastily, head ducking back behind is books.

'Uh huh, sure.' Alya leaned over him skeptically, resting her chin in her hand.

'I'm not!' Adrien insisted.

'Then drop the scarf.'

He hesitated.

'Drop it.'

'Dude, it can't be that bad.'

'I got an- umm- really _really_ embarrassing tan line.' Adrien fumbled.

Both Alya and Nino burst out laughing. 'What?' he said flatly, glancing between the two.

'Hold- hold on.' Alya gasped out between chuckles. 'I just- I need to- I _can't_ comprehend it! Adrien _freaking Agreste_ has a bad tan line?'

Nino shook his head, grinning. 'There's no way your old man would allow that!'

'C-come on, guys! You're meant to support me in this!' Adrien could feel the back of his neck heating up, spreading up to his (whiskered) cheeks. He ducked behind his books again, pouting slightly.

'Sorry, Adrien, it's just- just so- _funny!_ ' Alya was still laughing, hand moving to wipe a tear from her eye.

'Just tell us the real reason.'

'I umm . . . have a YouTube channel?' He winced at the words, knowing that his friends would never buy that excuse.

Alya made a noise, imitating a quiz show buzzer. 'Try again!'

'Makeup from modelling?'

'You've never hidden it before, dude. Why start now?' Nino shrugged.

'B-because this one is awful!' He insisted.

'Make-up wipes are a thing!' Alya imitated his tone, poking the back of his head. He internally groaned.

'Uuuuhhhh . . .' he was running out of excuses now, grasping at straws. 'hickey?'

The two of them burst out laughing again, and Adrien found himself turning red again. 'Yeah, that one was pathetic.' he muttered, once again bringing his books up to hide behind.

It was at that moment that several things happened.

One: Marinette skidded into the classroom. This was odd, seeing as though she was later than everyone else, it was still before the bell. Marinette was early.

Two: She fell over. Nothing out of the ordinary about that, but-

Three: She flailed with her arms as she fell, managing to hit Adrien's books on the way down.

Four: The books flew to the floor, leaving Adrien without his secondary defences.

Five: His scarf fell down around his neck.

'Sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-' Marinette mumbled, picking up the scattered books to hand back to Adrien. 'I just-'

The sound of books slamming to the floor again filled the classroom, a hush from students' conversations. 'A-a-a-a-adrien!' Marinette stammered, staring up at the boy from her kneeling position in front of his desk. He was fully aware of all eyes in the classroom being on him- most of them thankfully not being able to see his face.

Alya, Nino and Marinette, however . . .

Alya groaned quietly to herself. 'How did I not see it?'

'Uuuh, Hi, Mari?' Adrien managed, waving. She didn't see it, eyes locked on his face. 'Are you okay?'

'P-peachy- yeah, I'm fine!' she squeaked out.

'Sure?'

'Sure I'm sure! Never been better!' she still retained her high-pitched voice, frozen to her place.

'Marinette?' Nino asked.

'Ye-ahh?' She blinked, attention diverted to Nino, though Adrien noticed she was getting increasingly pale.

'You seem a bit . . . out of it today.' He continued, looking concerned for his friend's well-being.

'I'm fine, I'm fine.' She said, slowly getting to her feet. She was now pointedly avoiding Adrien's eye contact, and he realised why.

Fumbling with his scarf, Adrien tried his best to hide the marker lines to no avail. 'So . . . aahh . . .'

'Can we-' she broke off, taking a shaky breath 'Can we- we speak outside for a minute, Adrien?'

'Uh, sure.' He replied, standing up and following the shorter girl outside into the hall, being careful not to step on any of the books.

Outside, Marinette was silent, hands gripping the sleeves of her jacket. She chewed her bottom lip, still avoiding eye contact with Adrien.

'Mari?' Adrien tried, letting go of the scarf to reveal the lines. There was no use hiding them when she already knew, right? He reached out to rest a hand on her shoulder, but she batted it away.

'Don't.'

'Marinette I-'

'I said _don't!_ ' She cried, whirling around to face him. 'It's so damn obvious, isn't it?'

'I-'

' _Isn't it?!_ '

'I don't think I'm following. . .' He said carefully, trying to skirt the topic.

' _You're_ Chat Noir!' Marinette said, and he flinched away slightly.

Adrien should have known by now that no excuse could salvage this- the secret was out. He tried anyway 'Just because the Ladyblog has-'

'And, ooh, dear sweet Marinette never noticed!' she continued, interrupting like he wasn't even there 'He sits _directly in front of her,_ and she _never noticed!_ '

'They're just whiskers, it's not as if-'

'Ladybug's an idiot.' She lowered her voice suddenly, barely speaking above a whisper. 'She put him- _you-_ in danger.'

'Mari, I don't think it's that bad, is it?'

'That's the thing!' she raised her voice again, pointing her finger at him, right in his face. 'If it wasn't for those dumb questions, none of this would have-'

Adrien moved before he could think, hand clapping over her mouth. 'How do you know about the questions?' he hissed, eyes narrowing.

Marinette paused, drawing back from Adrien. 'I. . .'

'Marinette? What do you know?'

She shook her head, refusing to meet his eyes.

'How do you kno-'

'Chat! Why don't you realise it already?!' Marinette shouted, stomping her foot childishly. Her tone of voice made Adrien stop for a moment, dawning realization hitting him.

 _Chat!_ Even the inflection was exactly the same.

'My Lady?' He blurted out before he could stop himself. She nodded slowly.

'It's me, Chat.' She whispered, finally meeting his gaze. 'It's me.'


	4. Chapter 4

Ladybug was late.

A week ago, Chat Noir would have been worried about this. He would've freaked out, scared that he didn't know about a new Akuma victim. She could've been in trouble without him.

But after today, he had a pretty good idea of why this was the case.

A zipping noise sounded from the other side of the Eiffel Tower, and Chat jumped to his feet.

'... Hey?' Ladybug started uncertainly as soon as she returned her yo-yo to her hip. She stared at the ground, shifting her weight from foot to foot.

'Hey,' he replied. He held himself back awkwardly, waiting for her to make the first move.

'So... you-' Ladybug started, before closing her mouth again.

'And you-'

'Yes.' She nodded, the movement seeming stiff. Her eyes were still trained to the floor, causing Chat to sigh ever-so-slightly.

'At least it was us who found out first, right?' Chat Noir said. He sat down at the edge of the tower, letting his feet hang off the side. Ladybug hesitated for a moment before coming to sit by his side. 'It could've been an Akuma, or Hawk Moth, but...' he motioned to the two of them, letting that finish his sentence.

'I-I guess...?' she pulled a leg to her chest, letting her chin rest on top of her knee as she watched the city lights. The golden glow reflected in her bright blue eyes, and Chat felt a smile gracing his features.

She caught it out of the corner of her eye. '...what?'

'Nothing.' Chat said. It really was nothing- a tiny detail most would miss.

Her eyes were the exact same shade.

'I'm sorry, this is awkward I just-'

'It's fine,' he said simply, giving a small shrug. 'It's understandable after today.'

'Well, yeah, but I don't know how I didn't see it or why it doesn't- _you-_ and- an-and me! _Ladybug!'_

Chat Noir gave her a cattish smile. 'Did I shatter your-'

' _Volpina!'_ she yelped suddenly, and Chat blinked. 'That entire day was you running around back and forth! _That's_ how you knew that Ad- you.' her cheeks flushed red under her mask.

'That's how you knew it was an illusion.' she muttered, pulling her knee in tighter. Chat nodded.

'To be honest-'

'Pun.' Ladybug interrupted.

'Wha?'

'Start your sentence again, but do the pun.'

'Ooookayy... _tabby_ honest,' Chat restarted, and Ladybug smiled in response. 'Simon Says was a _whole_ other level. I transformed what... three times that day? Plagg said I owed him so much camembert for that.'

'I think the worst I had to deal with was the Evillustrator incident,' Ladybug said, her eyes brightening the more they spoke. 'It was so hard not to transform and help you out!'

Chat chuckled. 'You did well as yourself, though.'

Ladybug fell silent, staring out at the city again. Chat's ears drooped. '... did I say something wrong?'

'You don't deserve me as a partner,' she said 'there are people that could do my job much better.'

'My Lady, no.'

'What? It's true!'

Chat swished his tail grumpily. 'Ladybug, there's _nobody_ in Paris who could take your place.'

'But-'

'And that's final,' he confirmed, 'and besides...' he continued, nudging her side gently with his elbow. 'I'm glad it's you.'

The spotted hero gave him a weak smile. 'I'm glad it's you too.'

'Now then;' he said after a moment. 'I believe introductions are in order.'

'What? But I-'

'Hello, Ladybug,' he said, ignoring her protests. 'My name is Adrien Agreste. Child model, student, and part-time hero. You are...?'

'Chat, we're in public.' she hissed, glancing around to check for any bystanders.

'It's the middle of the night though! Come on, this is our first meeting, you have to do it.'

'Fine, fine;' she sighed, letting go of her leg so she could swing it over the side of the tower and turn to face her partner properly. 'I'm Marinette Dupain-Cheng, student, designer, daughter of a baker. I save the City nearly once a week.'

Chat laughed. 'It's nice to meet you... Marinette.' his smile widened as he said her name.

'You too, Adrien,' Ladybug replied.

'But,' Chat said. 'there's someone else I'd like you to meet.'

'Huh?'

'Plagg-'

'Chat! Someone will see!'

'Claws in.'

Green light shot upwards from his feet, trailing along Chat Noir's body. A black blur shot out from the light and floated down to rest in his blonde hair, which had smoothed back down into a styled look.

'Got any cheese?' Plagg yawned from on top of Adrien's head. Ladybug blinked.

'...what?' Adrien said, raising a perfect eyebrow.

'N-n-nothing.' she stammered. 'I just... I knew it was you, but... seeing it.'

'Yeah,' he agreed 'It's the eyes and hair, isn't it?'

'No!' Ladybug cut in, cheeks darkening again. 'it's actually... the eyebrows.'

'The eyebrows.' he deadpanned. Ladybug nodded, blue eyes wide as she looked at him.

'Well, if you two lovebirds are finished gawking at each other,' Plagg said, and Ladybug made a choking noise. 'I haven't seen Tikki in millenia! Bring her out!'

Ladybug was still recovering from the Kwami's comment, her ears flushing now. 'Tikki,' she managed, desperately avoiding Adrien's gaze. 'Spots off.'

Her light was pink, glittering more than Chat's had. It trailed slower too, fading into the air.

'Plaaaaaaaagg!' a tiny voice shrieked. A red blur shot out of Adrien's vision, crashing into Plagg. The two kwami tumbled off his head, spinning wildly through the air. 'Plagg!' she squeaked again, hugging the cat-ish creature. Adrien turned to watch them, the two tiny beings hugging and smiling. Tikki was crying, squeezing Plagg as tight as she could.

'Tikki! It's been so long!'

'I know! I missed you! I missed you _so much_!'

'Whiskers.' someone whispered from next to Adrien, and he tore his eyes from the kwami to meet the blue eyes of Ladybug.

No.

Marinette.

'Sorry, what?' he said, having not quite registered what she said.

Marinette bopped his nose, a hint of a smile showing on her lips. Adrien noticed her cheeks were still tinged red, as if her mask was still in place. 'Your whiskers,' she repeated. 'You still have them on.'

Adrien went cross-eyed, trying to see his cheeks. It didn't work, but he sighed anyway. 'That's going to be fun to explain to Father.' he said.

The two kwami floated down to settle on the edge of the tower, chattering away. They seemed to be catching up on all the years they missed from being apart.

Marinette smiled as she watched them. 'Which reminds me;' she said 'We didn't complete our game last night.'

'Our what?'

Marinette giggled, shaking her head. 'I'll go first then. Favourite food?'

'Oh!' Adrien exclaimed in recognition. The game _had_ been cut short with her Lucky Charm. 'Anything from your parent's bakery!'

'Really?'

'Of course! That time I came over to your place for practice for the tournament- I mean, I didn't end up competing, but your parents are so nice! They made food for me!'

'Food.' Marinette mumbled. 'if that's all it took...' she trailed off, catching his eye. 'Sorry.'

'For what?'

'Nothing;' she replied hastily. 'How about I bring in some food to class tomorrow?'

Adrien nodded eagerly. 'That would be amazing, Mari!'

'Anything in particular?'

'Pastries. And cookies.' he said, grin forming once more. Marinette smiled when she noticed his real smile didn't change, whether he was in his suit or not.

'Your turn, anyway.'

'Umm... I'm drawing up blank.' he admitted.

'But knowing who we are opens up so many more doors!' she insisted. 'It should be easy to come up with one!'

'Well, I've got nothing.' Adrien shrugged. Marinette sighed in defeat, dropping her head to rest on his shoulder.

'Why not?' she pouted.

'Because I want to learn the slow way;' he found himself saying. 'As friends and partners.'

'That was so cheesy.' she snorted.

'Cheese?!' Plagg's attention shot over to their conversation. So did he, hovering in front of his chosen's face.

'Nothing, Plagg, go back to speaking to Tikki.' Adrien groaned, rolling his eyes.

Marinette laughed at the interaction, and Adrien smiled again. He was glad it was Marinette resting on his shoulder, rather than someone else.

'Silly kitty.' she murmured.

'I'm just Adrien, though,' he replied.

'Whiskers~' she snickered, sitting up so she could poke his cheek again. 'You'll be my kitty until they wash off.'


	5. Chapter 5

'Can we-' Marinette broke off, taking a shaky breath 'Can we- we speak outside for a minute, Adrien?'

'Uh, sure.' He replied, standing up and following the shorter girl outside into the hall, being careful not to step on any of the books. As soon as the door clicked shut behind them, Nino turned in his seat to face Alya.

'Dude, what just happened?' he said. She glanced down, scooping up her phone and staring at the black screen. She had locked it long before now, but the photos were seared into her mind.

'I… uh….' Alya fumbled. 'Nino, you _did_ see that, right?'

'The-?' Nino motioned to his face. Alya nodded in response.

'So he's-'

Another nod.

'Which means that _she's_ -'

Another nod.

'I think so.' Alya's mind was spinning too fast, trying to make sense of the events unfolding. How hadn't she caught on sooner? Why was it now that it all became clear?

Alya took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment. As she opened them she locked her phone and placed it face-down on the desk. The awkward and silent tension that had filled the room moments before was slowly lifting.

'Did you see Adrien's face?' Kim said.

'Most of us sit too far back;' Nathaniel said in return, pushing his hair from his eye and leaning back in his seat. He jabbed a thumb at Ivan. 'Plus, I sit behind Ivan. If they can't see me, I can't see them.'

'Do you want me to move?' Ivan mumbled, turning to look at Nathaniel.

'N-no, sorry, I like it here.'

Ivan shrugged, turning to the front again. He hunched over the paper on his desk again, scribbling down a couple of words. Alya assumed Ivan was writing a song in his spare time.

'And before you ask Kim, no, I didn't.'

Kim let out a sound of disappointment, folding his arms. 'That's boring.'

'So what was it?' Alix demanded. She was sitting on her desk, facing her rival. He laughed.

'Not even you saw?'

'I was too busy thinking up another way to whoop your butt!'

Kim tsked, shaking his head. 'Never gonna happen, Al. What about you, Chloe? Sabrina?'

Chloe's head shot up at the sound of her name, having been distracted by filing her already perfect nails. 'Pardon?'

'Did you see Adrien's face?'

Sabrina shook her head. 'We saw him this morning, but he had his scarf up to his nose,' she said, glancing at her friend. 'I think he's got a cold or something.'

'And as much as I love Adrien, I'd _hate_ to catch his germs!'

Kim rolled his eyes. 'Mylene?'

'I don't pry into other people's businesses, Kim!'

'Alright, alright. Jules?'

She shook her head. Rose did the same. 'The poor thing, he shouldn't come to school when he's sick.' Rose said.

'He misses a lot of lessons because of modelling and stuff,' Juleka pointed out. 'He probably doesn't want to fall behind.'

'I suppose…'

'This is getting nowhere;' Kim announced, throwing his hands in the air. 'Alya and Nino, you must have seen that, right?'

Alya cursed under her breath. 'He's onto us,' she muttered. Nino snorted at the prospect.

'Bro, it's Adrien's business, okay? Just let it drop.'

'So that means you _did_ see!' Alix chimed in, turning from her seat to grin at the two of them.

'I never said that!'

Kim and Alix exchanged glances, before the girl slid around Mylene and crossed the room to Alya's desk in a smooth movement.

'Alya, Alya, Alya…' she sighed, shaking her head. Kim leaned back in his seat and folded his arms, smirking as he did so. 'You're the most observant person in our class, always holding your phone in case something needs documenting.'

'I put it away as soon as we walked into class this morning, Alix.' Alya said slowly, making sure to keep a neutral facial expression.

Alix didn't buy it for a second. 'It's right on your desk.' She deadpanned.

'Yeah, Alya! What did you do, just put it on the seat next to you?' Kim added.

'Don't pretend you guys don't do it either!'

'We don't.' Kim frowned as he said it, and his best friend cleared his throat.

'Actually, I use mine as a secondary timer.' Max said.

'And I keep mine on in case of updates on Twitter from Prince Ali!' Rose added.

'Art reference!' Nathaniel chimed in, before once more ducking out of sight behind Ivan.

Sabrina nodded, pushing her glasses up her nose. 'Deadline markers!'

'Just in case I need to call my daddy!' Chloe said, momentarily pausing in her nail filing.

Alya looked back to Kim smugly.

'…okay, okay. But _only_ to keep a check on game scores.' He admitted. 'So what's your point?'

'Nothing;' Alya shrugged, picking up her phone and wiping some non-existent dust off the screen. 'Now I just have evidence to use on the teacher if I ever get in trouble for having it out.'

She quickly input her passcode, tilting the screen away from everyone else so they wouldn't catch the incriminating images on her blog. She knew most of them followed the Ladyblog, but if they put two and two together about Adrien…

Alya cast the thought away, quickly exiting her browser and instead opening her messages to Marinette.

 _Girl, I need an explanation when you get back._

'Kiiiiiiiiim!' Alix whined, slumping over the desk in front of her. He looked at her innocently.

'Yes, Al?'

'Just tell us what the deal with Adrien's face is!'

He chuckled. 'Okay, get this. You all keep up with Alya's blog, right?'

Alix rolled her eyes. 'Once a fortnight or so, when I have time. It's not like I check with every new update.'

Kim raised an eyebrow.

'Of course _I_ do!' Chloe said, tossing her hair over her shoulder.

'Her secret identity and the discussion threads.' Juleka added.

'The interesting theories about her superpowers!' Max said.

'Art reference.' Nathaniel said idly, adding a spot to Ladybug's mask in his latest comic.

'Anything to do with her and Chat Noir being made for each other!' Rose sighed dreamily.

Mylene smiled. 'The stories from the people she's saved.'

'Everything.' Nino said. Nobody doubted that; the guy was smitten for Alya.

'… Okay, fine. I like the videos of them in action.' Alix mumbled.

Alya wondered silently if she should be proud of herself or slightly embarrassed that all her classmates kept up with the Ladyblog. She decided on the former, giving appreciative grins to them all.

'So you've all seen the latest post.' Kim continued. A chorus of 'yes' filled the room, before Alix shrieked.

'You're kidding!' she yelled, going to lean back on Marinette's desk but missing and slipping to the floor. 'He's—'

'Keep your voice down, Alix.' Nino scolded, casting a nervous glance to the door. 'Him and Mari are still out there!'

The rest of the class seemed to be putting the pieces together, Sabrina pulling out her phone to check the post again. Max was deep in thought, working over it in his brain. Nathaniel erased Chat Noir's mask, staring at the finished product in barely contained surprise.

Nino glanced back at Alya grimly, obviously thinking the same thing as her. Alya winced, mentally counting down.

 _3_

 _2_

 _1_

Chaos erupted.


	6. Chapter 6

It had been two months and miraculously (ha-ha.), nobody had cracked yet.

In fact, Alya was feeling proud of them all. It was their secret, knowing that Adrien – son of the most prestigious designer of all Paris, and part-time model – was Chat Noir, a masked vigilante.

It brought the class closer together, if anything. They became good at coming up with excuses on the fly as to why he skipped out on class, instead of the classic "modelling". They automatically took turns in doing so, meaning there were no conflicting stories. Mme Bustier hadn't caught on as of yet, and anytime she left the classroom it exploded into chatter.

But there were also cons. Namely…

"We all know you've figured out the 'bug."

Alya sighed, turning in her seat to face Kim.

"So what if I have?" she countered in a stage whisper, just as her phone buzzed.

Akuma alert. Alya had been developing the app for months now, but it was sometimes a bit patchy. Marinette still occasionally giggled at the time it picked up on the screams of a Jagged Stone concert.

Speaking of Marinette, Alya idly wondered what others thought about her "bathroom breaks".

If she was gone, it probably meant the alert was real.

"So, tell us!" Alix chimed in, leaning closer so she could partake in the conversation. Mylene sighed heavily as Alix moved into her personal space.

"Do you want to swap seats so you can speak?" she asked flatly, dropping her tablet pen and sitting up.

Alix gave her a cheeky grin. "Never thought you'd ask."

A swapping of seats later, Alix turned back to Alya and motioned for her to move closer. Alya rolled her eyes, sliding across the bench into Marinette's empty spot. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Nino doing the same with Adrien's spot.

"I cannot _believe…_ " Alya mumbled to herself, just as nearly everyone else in the class turned to her. Waiting.

"What makes you think I'm going to tell you?" she eventually said, decidedly pulling up her phone and flicking through her emails. Everyone groaned, the classroom devolving into several small conversations.

"Good try," Kim chuckled, reaching over to pat Alix on the head. She swatted his hand away with a slight scowl. "But you're doing it wrong."

Alya felt a smile tug at her lips, but hid it as she continued to play around on her phone. She switched to messages, staring at the last one she had sent to Marinette.

 _Girl, I need an explanation when you get back._

Two months. Two whole months and Marinette still hadn't answered. It was, on all levels, rude, and Alya was stubborn enough not to change the subject.

Okay, maybe Alya was overreacting. Marinette always called, or used the group chat they now shared with Adrien and Nino.

Adrien. That was an entirely different park.

"—Alya? Alya!"

"Hm?" she hummed, not bothering to look up from her phone. "Yeah?"

"I asked if you could check the updates." Nino repeated, "Your phone buzzed for an akuma, right?"

Trust Nino to draw the conversation _just_ far enough into a new topic that it seemed he wasn't doing it on purpose.

Alya flicked to the news channel, clicking the livestream and turning the volume up so everyone could hear.

"—heading for the local high school, Ladybug and Chat Noir in hot pursuit."

Everyone groaned.

"Do we wait for Mme Bustier to return before evacuating?" Rose asked, brow creasing.

Alya rolled her eyes, picking up her bag and heading for the door. "What's the point?" she called, slinging her bag over her shoulder. "I'm going to find Marinette, the rest of you leave!"

"But we haven't been dismissed by the teacher!"

In the near distance, an explosion sounded, a trail of smoke rising into the air a few blocks away.

Chloe laughed. "Max, _please._ There's an akuma headed right this way, and you're worried about whether we have permission to leave the class?"

Max faltered. "Well, when you put it that way…"

Alya sighed, long and hard. "Just leave. Ladybug and Chat Noir can handle it."

"And you know this because…?" Alix quipped as she headed for the door.

Alya gave her a deadpan stare. "Because they've saved everyone in this classroom on multiple occasions – as akumas and not."

"Yeah, everyone but—" Alix broke off, eyes widening. "oh."

"Who?" Alya muted her phone, looking up and catching sight of Alix's face of dawning realisation.

Alix snorted. "Helloooo? Your best friend? Marinette's still in the bathroom! She doesn't know the Akuma's headed this way!"

There was another deep explosion – close enough to rattle the windows.

"If she didn't before, she does now." Alya said, pushing Alix on so everyone could leave faster, joining the throng of students out in the halls.

She stopped by Nino's desk, waiting for the rest of the class to file out.

"Why do Akumas hate our school in particular?" Nino said, putting on his cap and reaching for Adrien's bag.

"Believe me, I've been asking the same thing since the third time." Alya replied. She glanced down at her phone, noting that the superheroes had distracted the Akuma, perhaps giving the students more time to evacuate. "Do you think this mysterious 'Hawk Moth' knows their identities?"

Nino frowned. "Now that you say that…" he trailed off, before shaking his head. "He can't. There's no way."

Alya shrugged. "I dunno. Our class was targeted very early on. He might know something."

"Hey," Nino bumped his shoulder into hers, giving a warm smile. "They've got this. No worries."


End file.
